The Disappearance of Tony Stark
by A Bit of the Fantastic
Summary: Pepper Potts had been around Tony Stark long enough to know that when it bleeped, you ran. But obviously he didn't get the memo. Pepper finds the mangled suit of Iron Man, but he's not in it. Where is he? Will be Pepperony
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: **Okay, so my first Iron Man story. The idea came to me randomly, and I get my scenes that I then write from my music (it acts as like a soundtrack). And oddly, it's mostly instrumental music that I get my inspiration from. Lately, the _Eternal Forest _album by Graeme Kin, and _Deep Joy _album by Isaac Shepard. I recommend them if you can stomach no lyrics.

Anyway, on with the prologue! Please **R&R **, I've actually got chapter one and most of chapter 2 handwritten, just need to type them and carry on more from it, so the first few updates will be fast…

* * *

**Prologue**

Pepper took a small step toward the bleeping drone. It increased in pitch and speed, and Pepper knew instantly something was wrong. She'd been around Tony long enough to know when something was going to blow up. As fast as she could, Pepper ran back inside the Expo building and threw herself under the front desk as if in an earthquake.

The explosion hit, shaking the walls of the building. Luckily, it didn't collapse and Pepper was safe. Another loud sound was heard by the PA, but this one was not an explosion. It was a sound she'd heard often enough when Tony came back from a mission battered and bruised.

The sound of the Iron Man suit crashing.

In a hurried frenzy, Pepper scrambled from beneath the desk toward the sound. Before she'd got very far, however, she collapsed to her knees, taking in the sight of the mangled Iron Man suit. Panicked and shaking, she crawled through broken glass to get to it. Parts meant for the suit were scattered through the glass, the arms were twisted and broken, leg pieces were missing, the headpiece twisted backward. Nobody could have survived that. A distressed sob broke through, her brain not registering the pain of the glass slicing through her skin.

Tony Stark was dead.

There were no two ways around it. Nobody could get that mangled and survive. She finally reached the suit and extended a hand to gently touch the metal. Another sob overtook as Pepper leaned down and hugged the suit.

The tears were flowing freely by the time Rhodey arrived, and when the ambulance and fire-fighters arrived, the tears were unstoppable. She still hadn't let go of the suit.

"Come on," Rhodey said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Let the fire-fighters get him out, then we can give him a burial." Pepper shook her head, giving a muffled reply. The next time she spoke, her voice was stronger.

"I'm not leaving him."

"You don't have to leave him, you just have to move." Pepper still refused, so Rhodey hooked his hands under her arms and lifted her, pulling her away.

"No!" Pepper cried, screaming, kicking and struggling, but Rhodey was much stronger. She fought until she heard the sound of the fire-fighters breaking through the metal. Then, energy spent, she collapsed against Rhodey, her body shaking with sobs. She cried until the sound stopped and moving metal could be heard. There were a few collective gasps and some whispers. Pepper looked up from Rhodey's chest, thinking they were gasping at the sight of a ruined Tony, but she herself gasped at what she saw.

The suit was empty.


	2. Chapter One

**Author's Note: **Okay, so here's chapter one. I'll get finishing chapter 2 ASAP…

* * *

**Chapter One**

In hindsight, pepper realised she should've checked for the tell-tale glow of the Arc Reactor before jumping to conclusions. But, she'd been panicking when she'd seen the suit, so it was excusable.

"Pepper?" the voice of Rhodey brought her out of the thoughts in her head and back to the ambulance surrounding her. A paramedic was checking the cuts she'd gained from crawling on the glass with some kind of alcohol that she figured should burn, but she couldn't feel it.

"I'm fine," she replied with a smile. She was fine; Tony was alive. If he wasn't in the suit, then he wasn't dead.

"Pepper," Rhodey started. "Nobody could survive that sort of crash. You saw the suit."

"I did, Rhodey," she was still smiling, "the suit was empty. He wasn't in the suit when it crashed; therefore, he's obviously alive."

With a sad look in his eyes, Rhodey realised that Pepper was in shock. He'd know for a while that her and Tony were close, and knew now that she wasn't going to admit Tony hadn't survived.

"Come on," he said, offering a hand. "I'll take you home."

"No," she argued. "I want to go to Tony's. He needs the place cleaning for when he returns.

Sighing, Rhodey agreed.

* * *

Pepper opened the door to Tony's Malibu home, her arms full of metal. She'd insisted on bringing the suit with her, claiming he'd want to try and fix it. Jarvis greeted her upon entry, and opened the door to the workshop upon request. She placed the metal down before leaving, returning upstairs. She took off her jacket and hung git over the sofa.

"Jarvis, some music while I clean, please?"

"Of course, Miss Potts. What would you like?"

"You choose Jarvis – you know what I like."

As the music started, Pepper began to clean. She hovered, polished, neatened up and dusted, ordered food to restock the fridge. When she finished that much sooner than anticipated, she set about organising his CDs, DVDs, and finally his wardrobe. When she'd done that, she rescheduled meeting and sorted through her emails.

"Miss Potts," came Jarvis' voice. "Colonel Rhodes is calling."

"Tell him to go away, I'm busy."

The AI was silent for a moment, before: "He told me to tell you this isn't healthy."

"Well you can tell _Colonel Rhodes _that when he can show me a degree in medicine that proved he can make a diagnostic such as that, I will speak to him. Ignore any calls from him in future.

"Yes Miss Potts."

* * *

It took a whole week fore it really register with Pepper that Tony was missing and not just away. She'd been going about her usual business so far – managing the company, eating, sleeping. But it was today that changed everything.

She'd been making herself a coffee, and then realised that she'd set out two cups. It was such a simple mistake to make, but the weight of it hit her like a ton of bricks. She'd done it everyday and hadn't noticed. She'd made him coffee… had she set out clothes for him too?

With shaking hands, she dropped the spoon she was using to make the coffee, and brought them up to her face, covering the sounds of her crying. Her eyes were shining with tears.

_He's gone…_

A sob tore through, creating a hole in the dam she'd built up this last week. She fell to her knees as the tears fell, the first since it happened. She felt so far away from him, so lonely. Pepper managed to take herself down to the workshop, thinking she'd feel closer then. But it almost drove her insane. It was too much; he was everywhere down here. He was lying in a chair, asking how big her hands were, he was working on a car, he was tinkering with the suit, and he was sliding along the floor in his chair. The room was so full of him – too full of him that it broke her heart to be in here.

With a cry, she pushed the nearest thing to her; some shelves. Then, she grabbed anything in reach and threw it, screaming all the while.

"Why?" she screamed, throwing something else, relishing in the sound of it crashing. "Why did you take him from me?" With a final sob she stopped, and noticed the mess around her. She noticed that her objects were always directed at one thing – the two remaining suits. She blamed the suit for his disappearance. If he hadn't made the suit, he would never feel the need to "save the world" and then he wouldn't have been gone again.

She staggered from the room as fast as she could.


	3. Chapter Two

**Author's Note: **There seems to be a bit of confusion about Rhodey's reaction. Yes he did see that the suit was empty, but he was kinda in shock about it, so is stunned into silence and doesn't move. The focus was supposed to be on Pepper so… Also, he has a rather pessimistic view on it, that he doesn't believe anyone could've survived the suit that was that destroyed, and his feelings are revealed more in this chapter anyway. A bit of a revolution in this chapter…

* * *

**Chapter Two**

After that initial week, Pepper lost contact with the outside world. She no longer went about her daily routine as if Tony were on vacation. She'd heard from Jarvis that Rhodey had called numerous times, but she never responded. She also lost concept of time. That day, when he world had tipped upside down, and therefore so had Tony's workshop, was spent frantically clearing up the mess in there with Dummy's help, before falling asleep on Tony's bed, clutching one of his unwashed shirts as if a lifeline. Now, it had been four months, and Pepper had barely noticed. Dummy made sure she ate by Jarvis' command, but other than that, she was left alone.

On this particular day, she was curled on the sofa in a pair of Tony's sweats and one of his wife-beater vests. Her arms were wrapped around her body almost defensively and her eyes were staring, unseeing.

"Miss Potts, Colonel -"

"Hang up."

"Yes, Miss Potts."

That was the only sound in the house, and it was always the same everyday. Rhodey would call, Pepper would reject, Jarvis would leave her be.

There was a cold cup of tea on the table in front of her, a small film of milk collecting on the top where it had been left so long untouched. Her laptop lay closed next to it, dusk gathering on the top from lack of use. If Tony were here he'd made a joke about her being seriously ill.

But that was the problem; Tony wasn't here to make that joke, so the laptop could stay where it was.

Pepper found herself thinking back to Afghanistan, when he'd been kidnapped. Even then, he'd been out in three months.

Her body was a mess of emotions – she mainly felt cold and lonely, longing for his presence. Then she'd wish that he had been found dead so she could finalise her grief. Then she would feel guilty for wishing him dead, and go back to being the lonely shell, clinging to the small hope that he was still alive.

Jarvis spoke again. "Miss Potts, Colonel Rhodes is calling again."

It was odd, because he never called twice before, but Pepper didn't answer the AI.

"Miss Potts?" she still didn't reply. When he went silent, Pepper assumed Jarvis had ignored the call, but then Rhodey's voice filled the home.

"Pepper this has got to stop. You've got to stop -"

"Stop what Rhodey? Grieving? I didn't realise it was a crime!" Pepper cut across.

"You don't have to stop grieving, Pepper, just stop shutting yourself away. You're not the only one who lost him dammit."

Pepper started at that, and felt that familiar guilt clawing its way in. In her state, she'd forgotten that Rhodey would be going through a familiar thing. He'd lost his best friend that night, and they should've been helping each other through it.

"I miss him too, Pep," Rhodey's voice was softer now.

Pepper hiccoughed and allowed tears to fall. "I just don't know how to function without him," she admitted. "My whole life revolved around him and now he's gone and I can't do it Rhodey. I don't know how to live without him." She was crying heavily now.

"It's okay, Pepper. We'll get through this."

* * *

Less than an hour later, Rhodey and Pepper were sat on the sofa of Tony's home, each with a steaming much in hand. Upon Rhodey's prompting, Pepper had told him where she hid the spare key, and he'd picked up some clothes for her before coming over and making them both coffee.

Pepper's eyes were still red-rimmed from crying, and her voice hoarse each time she spoke. Rhodey knew that now was not the time for he himself to lose his mind to the emptiness of his life now that Tony was gone, but it was time to help Pepper. He could still survive without Tony, he'd miss him, but he could survive.

He sometimes wondered if Pepper could.

"I noticed you weren't at the memorial," he commented. When Tony disappeared, Rhodey had held a memorial for him, but Pepper hadn't shown.

"I couldn't do it," Pepper replied. "It kinda made it all final, and I didn't want to accept that he was gone. I still don't."

"It's okay, pep. Things will get better, I promise."

"I sometimes wish his body was in that suit," Pepper admitted softly. "That way, at least I know what's happened to him. Then I hate myself for wishing him dead. I have dreams."

"Dreams?"

"Well, more nightmares. Of finding him. But the worse ones are the ones where he's okay, 'cause then I wake up and he's not here," Pepper looked down into the contents of her mug, before asking softly, "We'll be okay, won't we Rhodey?"

"Of course we will." Rhodey promised.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere in New York City, the rain was beating down hard from a dark night sky. A homeless man was huddled in an alley, wrapped in a tattered blanket. If you had asked him his name, he couldn't have answered you. If you had asked him how he ended up on the streets, he couldn't have told you.

Shivering, the man held the blanked tighter around him, and wished someone who knew him was looking for him, and would find him.


	4. Chapter Three

**Author's Note: **Wow, this is really popular XD I didn't expect it to be this popular at all. This is as far as I've got written now, and I'm away at the weekend and got an exam Monday and Tuesday, should maybe get an update up on Tuesday, but if not, then there will definitely be one on Wednesday.

* * *

**Chapter Three**

Months bled into each other as Pepper continued her grieving. Thanks to Rhodey, she'd been better however. She'd been going to meetings again, eating properly again, and to those unknowing, she was fine.

But every night, she died inside.

She'd still not moved from Tony's home, and some nights, Rhodey stayed too. Every night, she'd enter Tony's room, cling to the sheets and cry herself to sleep while her body was torn apart from the inside. Rhodey always heard, but he never questioned her.

Some nights she'd have nightmares of finding him. Sometimes the dreams showed him being found in pieces, torn apart like the suit. Others, he was in the suit.

Sometimes he was alive.

Those nights were the worst. When she would wake and find him gone, she felt as if she was losing him all over again.

In the eighth month, she had to leave her haven of Malibu. Here, she felt she were with Tony, and had yet to leave for any external meetings. She'd argued at first with the arrangement of the meeting, but Rhodey had eventually convinced her that a couple of days away might be good for her and help her on. So, on the 18th November, she took Tony's jet to New York.

* * *

The homeless man decided that November was the worst time in New York City. He was sure it was snowing on and off, and the tattered blanked he owned offered no protection against the frost.

He decided that no knowing anything about oneself other than blurred faint images of a beach, freckles and red hair, wasn't very good for being found.

He also decided that the blue glow win his chest was dreadfully annoying to sleep with.

* * *

Pepper stepped off the plane and shivered at the cold wind and pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders. A car was waiting for her, and took her to the hotel she'd be staying at. It was one she and Tony had used when they'd come here before, and they'd reserved the same suite he used to.

Half way through the journey they hit traffic, and it started to rain heavily. She sighed and looked out the window. She noticed a few homeless people huddled together in an alley, and it tugged at her heart-strings. She wondered how they'd survive winter in New York. Her mind went to Tony, and she found herself pondering whether he was in an alley somewhere, fighting against the cold.

She brushed the thought away quickly, deciding that if that were the case, some fan would've found him by now, or he'd have gone and called someone.

_Called me…_

She sighed again and her Blackberry began to ring. She pulled it out of her pocket and glanced at the caller ID, suppressing a groan as she did so.

_Mum._

She considered ignoring the call, but decided that after eight months of no contact, her mum would want to talk. Couple that with the media claiming she was clinically depressed and almost suicidal, Pepper answered.

"_Virginia! Are you okay? Why haven't you answered my calls?"_

This time, Pepper didn't bother suppressing the groan. This was why she was going to reject the call.

"Yes mum, I'm fine. I had a bit of a moment that's all."

"_A moment? The press said you were suicidal!"_

"Since when have you listened to the press?" Pepper's mum was silent. "Exactly," Pepper stated. "I had a moment where it really hit me that Tony was missing, is all."

"_But you're okay now?"_

"Yes mum, I'm fine," Pepper lied. "Look, I've gotta go, I'm nearly at a meeting." She quickly said her goodbye and hung up the phone. Truth be told, she as still in the same position she'd been in half an hour ago, but she couldn't bear to listen to her anymore. Thinking it was becoming a habit; Pepper sighed again and turned to look out her window.

* * *

He was grateful when the rain stopped, but his already soaked body was no defence against the bitter wind that continued. He wrapped his arms around him frail form, hands feeling bone beneath the thin fabric of his shirt.

Cold and hungry, the man fell into a fitful sleep. His dreams took their usual path into a familiar-feeling territory that was always just out of reach of his memory. They began with the red haired girl with freckles, but swiftly turned to torture and caves and sand. After that came a feeling of immense power and responsibility and sometimes brilliance. They always ended however with him feeling panicked over something. Flashes of the girl would appear, but she was always a hair-breadth away.

He woke with a start, restless and frustrated, and huddled into his blanket.


	5. Chapter Four

**Author's Note: **It comes to something when I update before I say I'm going to! This story just seems to be writing itself! It's a little bit shorter than usual, but it seemed an appropriate place to end it. **R&R!**

* * *

**Chapter Four**

The rain hadn't been as heavy for the last few days, consisting instead of a multitude of light showers. The man found these better, as he dried quicker and therefore didn't get as cold. He'd scavenged a newspaper from a nearby bin to find the date to be the 20th November.

He'd noticed someone starting at him yesterday, and they'd reminded him of the girl in his dreams. For a moment he thought she'd recognised him, and he felt a surge of relief at the thought. But then she shook her head, muttered something to herself, and walked away, leaving him to the darkness that was his only company.

He just wanted to be found.

* * *

Pepper pondered the fact that she may be insane. Surely seeing things counts as insane? But she'd been so sure that it was Tony, huddled in that blanket, but the man didn't seem to have even noticed her.

And Tony would've noticed her.

Even with that thought, pepper found herself walking past where she'd seen the man again. He was asleep this time, but seemed restless. She walked closer to him and knelt down in front of him. A light from under the blanket caught her attention, and with a gasp of shock, she thought it could be the Arc Reactor. Before she could look, however, the man woke with a start, making her jump. His eyes were wide and panicked, and took a few moments to even focus on her. When he did, Pepper knew it was him.

"Tony?" she whispered. The man started at her, no spark of recognition in his eyes.

"Is that my name?" he finally asked.

Tears welled in Pepper's eyes, and she longed to reach out and touch his face. Eight months she wondered where he was, presumed him dead, and he was struggling against the winter out here in New York, not knowing who he was.

"Yes," she told him, her voice catching. "Do you remember anything?"

He shook his head slowly. Someone had found him. He'd been found. "I have dreams," he told the woman. "And they feel familiar, but I can't seem to ever place them… do you know me?"

"Yes, Tony, I know you. Why don't you come back to my hotel with me and I can get you some food and warm clothes. You must be freezing out here." Tony seemed apprehensive, not fully knowing whether to trust the woman in front of him. But he longed for someone to know him and help him, so finally, he agreed, offering her a slight smile.

Thirty minutes later, Pepper had told Tony to use the shower in the bathroom of the suite, and laid out some fresh clothes she'd bought quickly for him, promising him answered to questions later. But first, she needed to call Rhodey. He answered sleepily.

"Rhodey?"

"_Yeah Pepper?"_

"There's been a change of plan. Can you get the plane to come get me tomorrow instead of Friday?" she asked.

"_Sure, but why?"_

Pepper had to hold her breath to stop herself from crying, as she uttered the words; "I've found him."

Rhodey was silent before; _"Shit. What happened to him? Why didn't he come back?"_

"He can't remember anything, Rhodey. He was on the streets, barely alive, and he can't remember anything!"

"_I'll keep this on the quiet. Can't have the press getting wind of this. He needs time to recover, maybe find something to spark his memory? Shit I can't believe he's alive."_

* * *

Tony listened from in the bathroom at the woman, Pepper, talked to someone on the phone. She sounded upset, and seemed to be talking about him. He was confused as to why; he'd been on the streets so long that he couldn't have been that missed, could he.

He glanced at his reflection in the mirror before turning to walk out of the room in the clothes the woman had bought for him.

For a while, he was uncomfortable around Pepper. He didn't really know who she was, so it was understandable. He did however; take full advantage of the food offered. She'd promised him answers, but he didn't know the questions. Noticing his discomfort, Pepper spoke.

"Do you want me to tell me about the dreams? I might be able to decipher them for you." Tony nodded, and answered her.

"They're always the same," he said, "They start with who I think is you. I recognise the hair and the freckles, but then it changed. They're dark, and hot, and there's sand. I'm being tortured," at that statement, he looked up at Pepper to see tears in her eyes.

"Do they finish there?" she asked.

"No," he replied. "After that, I feel powerful, invincible. And then there's sheer panic, and I'm trying to save someone. _Always _trying to save someone, but I never make it."

Holding her breath again, Pepper replied. "I think I can read those. You'll remember me so well because I'm your PA, but also a friend. The powerful feeling you feel will be due to one of your creations that I'll explain later. The torture… oh God Tony I didn't know they tortured you," her voice broke, and she paused before continuing. "You were kidnapped, a while ago now, but you were missing for three months before you broke out with the creation I mentioned. I didn't know you were tortured though."

"How long was I gone for this time?"

"Eight months. Everybody thought you were dead."

"Will you tell me what you know about me? From when you met me to when I went missing? Please? I'll find it easier to ask questions that way."

"Okay," Pepper conceded, and prepared herself for what she was sure was going to be a _very _long conversation.


	6. Chapter Five

**Author's Notes: **Sorry for the delay, I've been researching PTSD to try and write Tony's reaction to stuff etc, and it's something I want to do justice to as my mum is a Complex PTSD sufferer. And, it's my Chemistry GSCE tomorrow. Joy.

* * *

**Chapter Five**

Pepper had talked herself to sleep. She'd told Tony of when she'd first met him, about how she'd corrected a critical mistake in his math, to which he promptly replied "My math is never wrong" but didn't understand where the urge to say that came from. She'd stopped talking when she told of him finally going missing eight months prior. She'd also told him he was a superhero.

He'd taken it pretty well, considering. Never mind the fainting spell at the mention of dying of Palladium poisoning or again at being a superhero. Now, she'd sent him to bed, promising to take him home tomorrow. She herself was tired and suffering jaw ache, and leaped at the chance of sleep herself.

* * *

_Darkness. _All around him. Black. _Darker. _Engulfing him, _trapping him. _

He was slowly losing air. Fabric in his mouth, touch fabric. There was moisture entering. His throat was constricting.

_Oh God he was drowning._

"_Short shallow breaths. You'll recover quicker."_

From what? Oh _pain. _Excruciating pain. Burning through his flesh. And he was screaming, screaming as the pain _tore him apart._

Tony woke with a start, bolting upright. His body was covered in a cold sweat and he was breathing shortly. He wiped a hand over his face, and, pulling on his trousers, left the room.

Once standing in the main room of the suite, Tony didn't know what to do. He opted for standing by the window, watching the rain fall. When Pepper emerged sleepily from her room and asked him how long he'd been there, he replied; "long enough to watch the sun rise." When she asked him if he was okay, he had no answer. He wasn't sure. The voice of his dream was still haunting him. As if understanding, Pepper walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head between his shoulder blades.

* * *

When he'd been informed he was a millionaire (or billionaire) he'd been amazed. But it meant nothing until he saw he had a plane.

"I have my own _plane?_" he's asked. Pepper had only smiled and encouraged him onto the plane. Stunned, he'd followed her.

When on the plane, Pepper had sat across from him and handed him a notebook. At his confused glance, she'd stated that it was for him to write down anything he saw – dreams, flashes, slight memories as well as déjà vu moments. He'd smiled and accepted the book.

If Tony had been impressed with the plane, he was flabbergasted by the Malibu house he owned. He'd taken a while to even enter the house, opting instead to just stare from the outside, but had eventually allowed the schoolboy inside him lead him into the house, and giggle like a maniac. He was startled, however, by Jarvis speaking.

"Welcome back, sir," he said. "You have been missed."

"Is that the computer system you told me about?" Tony hissed to Pepper.

"Yes," Pepper replied, still smiling.

Pepper hadn't allowed Rhodey to meet them, or for Happy to drive them, deciding that bringing more people into Tony's life now before he could remember anything would be too soon, and cause him stress. They'd agreed, albeit reluctantly, telling her to call them if she needed anything.

Once the initial excitement had worn off, and Pepper had shown Tony everywhere except the workshop, they decided to order takeaway. Pepper knew it was risky, and that the press would wonder why she was ordering enough Pizza for a few people, but also knew that Tony needed to eat.

Once they'd eaten, Tony noticed a staircase he'd not seen before. Pepper was in the kitchen cleaning up, and, seeing as it was technically his house, Tony saw nothing wrong in following the staircase. He found an electronic keypad on a glass wall. Somehow, he already knew the code, and let himself into the room.

"Whoa," he breathed, and he looked about him. There were cars everywhere, and computers. He was in awe of the lot. He took a few steps into the room, and accidentally kicked something. Looking down to see what it was, he was assaulted with the sense of power again that he often felt at some point in his dreams. He picked up the piece of metal and examined it, before placing it on a chair. Taking a few more steps forward, he noticed two metal suits in the far corner.

He suddenly collapsed to the floor, screaming.

* * *

When Pepper heard the muffled scream she ran as fast as she could from the kitchen, kicking off her Jimmy Choos in the process. Jarvis swiftly informed her that Tony was in the workshop. Frantically running down the stairs, she entered the workshop, the door having been opened for her by Jarvis. Seeing Tony on the floor, seemingly in agony, Pepper rushed to his side and tried to hold him still.

"Tony?" she called to him. "Tony!" he wouldn't reply, but was muttering something under his breath between screams of pain. She could faintly make out the words "drowning". He thrashed about against her hands screaming and muttering for an indefinable time, before slumping, spent, against her. Virtually crying now, Pepper stroked a hand across his head. His breathing had evened out, and she realised that he'd fallen asleep.

Looking up at the main screen, Pepper asked Jarvis to show her what had happened before Tony collapsed. Form what she could see for the first three times she watched the video footage, nothing had happened; he'd just fallen. But a closer look showed her that he'd seen the suits. When she mentioned this to Jarvis, he'd replied;

"A symptom of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is that when a sufferer sees something that may cause a link to their traumatic ordeal, they will relive certain parts of their experience."

Sighing, fearing that maybe he _did _have PTSD; Pepper pressed a gentle kiss against Tony's head and continued stroking his hair, willing him to awaken soon.


	7. Chapter Six

**Author's Notes: **Well, it's safe to say I'm glad that exam's over. My God it was hard! **R&R! **

I'm thinking of either later in this story or in another story, writing what _actually _happened to Tony, from when he went missing to the streets to coming home, from his POV [still in third person but his focus]. Not sure whether to incorporate it into this though. Let me know what you think?

Super fast update from me XD wasn't expected, was it? The end of this chapter kinda wrote itself, I wasn't planning for what happens to happen, and it just decided that was what he was going to do. Ah well, I'm sure it'll let me know what it's doing soon…

* * *

**Chapter Six**

He wasn't sure why the suit had triggered the flash. But God it was a horrible flash. He felt as if he was really _there, _but he had no idea where 'there' was. He felt burning; there was always heat, painful heat, and the feeling of metal piercing flesh. He'd cried out, and was vaguely aware that Pepper came to him, but couldn't focus on her soothing words when he was feeling this much pain. Eventually, the pain became too much, and he fell into a blissful black abyss.

But even that couldn't last for long, for the dreams came.

In the dreams, there was always that haunting voice…

"_Short shallow breaths. You'll recover quicker."_

It was always the same voice – telling him he'd recover, but from what he wasn't sure. Then there was shouting. He couldn't make out the words, there was just noise. Faintly he saw what looked like a mummy's tomb. He felt himself panicking from it. The next scene consisted of him waking up on what seemed to be a hospital bed.

Opening his eyes slowly, Tony saw the worried eyes of Pepper staring down at him. He tried to smile, but it came as more of a grimace.

"Want to write it down?" she asked him, handing him a pen and the notebook. He had, he wrote all of what he'd seen and felt down.

* * *

It was a few days before the media got wind of Pepper "hiding" someone in Tony's house, and there were even a few clever reporters who speculated that it could be Tony himself. Pepper herself refused comment.

It was a few weeks before she saw the scars. She'd accidentally walked in on Tony while he was changing his top, and promptly dropped everything she was holding, gasping.

"What?" he'd asked, then noticing her stare, said; "oh, those. I don't know how I got them. They look like they might be something to do with what I keep seeing but I don't remember getting them."

Covering Tony's back were numerous round scars, about three centimetres in diameter. The same shaped scars were on his chest too. There was evidence that at some point, he'd had to have stitches around almost all of his back.

The shock of the scars had worn off, much like seeing the Arc Reactor for the first time had.

It was a month before she noticed that he wasn't sleeping. She'd stayed living with Tony to offer him some sort of comfort and not leave him alone in a world he no longer knew, and had often thought she'd heard him up late at night, but passed it off as her imagination. But the black circles around his eyes told her a different story.

It was six weeks until he admitted to not being able to sleep, and it was seven when he admitted the nightmares that still plagued him.

And so, Pepper took to staying in the room next to his, listening out for him at night. One the few occasions that he did make a noise, he always screamed. On the quieter nights, she would check on him periodically. Those nights, he was either not sleeping, or muttering quietly under his breath.

"_Short shallow breaths. You'll recover quicker."_

"_No-one can hear you in there. We'll see you in an hour."_

He'd always mutter pleas for freedom, seemingly arguing his innocence. On those nights Pepper wouldn't awake him. Those nights he was calmer, and although fitfully, he would sleep all night through. So she left him, praying he'd get better soon.

It was 8 weeks when he first broke down. He'd been in the workshop, working on some project or another, muttering things as he worked. He looked so much like the old Tony that Pepper had instantly assumed he was remembering things.

"It's coming back then?" she'd innocently asked.

In a second his whole mood changed. He threw down whatever he was holding and stood, whirling to face Pepper.

"No it's not _fucking _coming back! I can read and write and I know all this techno-fucking-babble but at the same time I know nothing and I'm completely fucking useless! I may as well be dead my memory is that bad. I forget my own fucking _name _every day I wake up, and it's only when you call me that I start to remember the last couple of months with you! I can barely remember being on the streets and I'm damned if I wanna know what _actually _happened to me when I went fucking AWOL!"

Eyes brimming with tears at the unexpected outburst, Pepper had run from the workshop and then the house. Frustrated and angry at himself for upsetting her accidentally, Tony kicked what he was working on, making Dummy wince. He ignored the robot, and stormed up the stairs, fully intent on finding Pepper, regardless of whether the damned media would see him, and regardless of whether he'd get lost in the process.

She was worth it.


	8. Chapter Seven

**Author's Note: **Wow, I seem to be writing like crazy these last couple of days. When I originally wrote this, I had NO idea it would be so popular, and honestly, past him missing and Pepper finding the suit, I actually didn't know what I was going to do with this story. A big thanks to my boyfriend Roger and my friend Molly for helping me figure stuff out to actually continue it, and my dad for giving me ideas of torture!

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

Pepper found that she couldn't go farther than the beach. She'd left the house – all tears and embarrassment, intent on going as far away as possible from the house, but as soon as her eyes caught sight of the sea, she'd turned in that direction. The beach was her safe haven; the gentle breeze and the smell of salt, while the sand gently tickled her toes.

But right now she was going to destroy that peace. She was so angry at herself for her slip-up that she didn't manage to keep the "Pepper Potts exterior". She took off each shoe, and with a scream, threw them toward the shoreline. She pulled the band keeping her hair up tightly out and dropped it to the ground, allowing her strawberry hair to fall messily. She _hated _that she'd screwed up. But she just missed _Tony. _

The Tony that was in the house was not the Tony she…

She what? Remembered?

…_Loved._

Tears of frustration fell from her eyes, and she let herself slip and fall onto the sand. She bunched her fists into the sand, allowing it to run through the gaps between her fingers as she cried.

"Pepper!" she could faintly hear Tony calling, and for a moment of panic imagined him following her from the house. Her professional mind started worrying over what the media would do if they saw him, but then found she couldn't care.

Tony was _back. _He might not be her Tony, but he was still alive. And the world deserved to know.

"Pepper!"

_Dammit._

Wiping away the tears form her cheeks, scratching them with the sand caught in her hand and leaving some remaining on her face, she looked around for Tony. He was running toward her, a look of panic on his face.

"I didn't know where you'd gone," he said, coming closer to her. "Are you crying? Ah shit Pepper I didn't mean to make you cry. I'm just annoyed that I can't remember more than I could a month ago. I'm sorry." He sat on the sand beside her and took one of her hands in his. She noticed mildly that his hand was considerably larger than hers, and nearly covered the whole hand from view. The blue glow of his arc reactor was creating a gentle light over them, and Pepper found herself crying again.

"I'm sorry," she managed through tears. "I just miss _him. _I mean, you are him, but you're not _him_," she hiccoughed, and Tony silently pulled her into a tender embrace. His hands rubber over her back and he rested his chin against her head.

And Pepper cried.

* * *

Tony decided that no matter what, he really needed to remember. If not for his sake, then for Pepper's. The breakdown on the beach earlier had just proved that she was really upset about the loss of her ex-boss and close friend.

And to be honest, Tony missed himself.

He wished he could remember who he was – his childhood, his friends. He had Tony Stark's knowledge of all things technical and mechanical, but he didn't have the key thing that made him Tony.

In the words of Austin Powers, he'd lost his 'mojo'. And he damn well wanted it back.

Pepper had gone back to her apartment, claiming that she needed some time away from the mansion to collect her thoughts. He'd let her go wordlessly, understanding, but reluctant to watch her leave. When she'd vanished from sight, Tony had entered his bedroom and picked up his notebook from the cabinet, and studied it.

He ripped out pages, and frantically placed them around him in a timeline of events. The first flashes and dreams he was in the suit. The rest were all in captivity. He put the ones of minimum fear and pain at the beginning, thinking that would be how he started, and the ones that were worse went toward the end.

Trying desperately to remember, Tony considered every single page. And he kept coming back to the same thing.

The suit.

He needed to go to where he was kidnapped; that would give him a starting point.

Collecting the pages up in the order he'd assembled them, Tony stood to leave.

* * *

Pepper knew that leaving Tony right now probably wasn't the brightest of ideas, but she couldn't stand to be around him any longer. She needed a break from watching the man who wasn't who she remembered.

_At least you have a memory._

Tiredly, Pepper set about showering and eating, collecting more clothes and essentials to stay at Tony's. When she was finished, and still not quite ready to return to his house yet, Pepper sat on the sofa in her living room and turned on the TV.

"_We have unconfirmed reports that Tony Stark has been seen leaving his Malibu home not an hour ago…"_

Pepper's jaw dropped as she listened to the reporter. Grabbing her bag, and calling Happy, Pepper ran from her house.


	9. Chapter Eight

**Author's Notes: **God, sorry for the delay! My main bulk of exams was these last two weeks so I've not really had time to write. However, I only have 4 left now, 2 on Wednesday, 1 on Wednesday next week, and 1 on Friday next week. Also, it seems to think that "repulsors" isn't right. Isn't that what they're called? Bit shorter than usual, I'm sorry, but following on from where we left…

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

Tony headed down to the workshop and grabbed the keys to the Audi, jumping into the aforementioned car. He sped out of the workshop, organised papers in the passenger seat. Once he'd got into the town of Malibu, he had to pull over and think.

He looked at the top paper again, and squeezed his eyes closed, trying to remember what the flash was that contained that. It didn't take long to remember that one.

Sheer utter panic was what awaited him there, but he controlled himself, willing himself to inspect his environment. And he did.

_It was dark. There were noises – explosions going off everywhere. Where was he? Someone was with him. A deep male voice belonged to him… _

_He was flying now; speeding. Then he recognised one key building._

Slamming the car into gear, he sped toward his destination. Once he arrived, Tony gazed at the tall building, and winced as the memory assaulted him.

"_All these drones are rigged to blow, we gotta get outta here man!" cried the man with the deep voice._

"_Pepper!" Tony took off from the ground._

_He set the repulsors to as fast as he could, and sped toward the Expo. The Expo was in sight when it happened._

_There was a sudden thump from his right that sent him tumbling onto the roof of a nearby building. Standing as quick as he could, he was again taken down by an unknown force. _

_Trapped to the ground now, Tony began to panic. He could hear the explosions happening around him, and he was helpless to them. _

"_Pepper…" he whispered._

Tony winced in his car again, but refused to open his eyes. He _had _to carry on. He _had _to remember what happened.

_He mused silently that these people knew what they were doing. They removed just the right amount of armour to remove his body from the suit, and began putting it back together. Tony couldn't understand why they'd want to put it back together._

_The last thing Tony saw before his vision blackened was his suit being thrown bodily over the roof – right into the Expo building where Pepper was._

* * *

Pepper ran into Tony's Malibu home as quick as she could, searching the main room for him before asking Jarvis where he was.

"Mr. Stark left approximately 47 minutes ago, Miss Potts."

"Where did he go? The press have seen him for God's sake!" there was no way they were going to be able to clear up this PR mess…

"He took the Audi and went in the direction of the old Expo building. Would you like me to locate the GPS of the vehicle?"

"Yes," Pepper cried exasperated. "Please," she added.

When the GPS had been downloaded to her BlackBerry, Pepper ran out the door to the limo where Happy was waiting. She gave him the location through the divider, but no response came.

"Happy?" she questioned. No response. Confused, Pepper reached to slide down the divider, but just as she did, something rapped sharply on the back of her neck, and everything went black.

* * *

Tony slammed a hand on the steering wheel in frustration. He'd lost the memory right after he'd blacked out on the roof. But there was still no memory of before or after that moment, and he was pissed. All he wanted to do was to remember what happened to him. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the seat. He sighed, and was just about to lean forward when a cloth with something pungent was placed across his mouth and nose. He struggled frantically, but to no avail.

And just like in the memory, everything went black.


	10. Chapter Nine

**Author's Notes: **Right, I thought I best get writing to make up for the huge delay before, and seeing as I have nothing else to do right now, there's no excuse is there? The rating of this story may go up, as what I'm writing now was completely unprepared for, and now it's just writing itself.

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

When Pepper came groggily around, she was aware of a few things. First; she was blindfolded, second; gagged, and finally; her hands were tied behind her back. She was laying on her side, judging from the tingles down her left side. She concentrated on keeping her breathing slow, as if she were unconscious still, and she tried to take in her surroundings.

She could hear voices, but they were muffled, so she deduced that they were in a separate room to her. Straining her ears to sounds closer to her; she noticed that she was alone here. Suddenly, the voices outside got louder, and people were shouting. A bang, probably the door, sounded, and the voices were suddenly much louder and clearer – but there were so many she couldn't make out words.

The next sensation she felt was a hand across her cheek. Unable to suppress a gasp at the pain, Pepper's façade was broken. A hand roughly grabbed her arm and pulled her upright. She swayed a little, dizzy from the sudden movement. The hand again made impact with her cheek, and the force of it almost made her stumble again, but Pepper knew better than to give in to it.

"Get up," the person ordered. Male, Pepper noticed, and British. Deep voice, sounds like a big man. She tried to get to her feet, but without the aid of her hands, it was difficult. After a few second struggle, the man hauled her to her feet, keeping hold of her elbow when he'd finished. "Move," he snapped, pushing her elbow.

It was difficult to put her trust entirely in somebody to lead her blindfolded, but she was left with no choice. So she settled for what she could do, she counted the steps and noted the direction.

_Straight, 22 steps. Left, 18 steps. Stairs, 7 of them. Right, 33 steps, left, pause._

"Wait there," she was told. She bit back a comment that she couldn't exactly go anywhere else. She heard the fumbling of keys in a lock, before she was pushed through an open door. Once in the new room, the man came up behind her. Too close.

His stale breath was hot and sticky against her shoulder, and she held back a shudder of disgust. The man's too large hands undid whatever was holding her hands together, and then his voice sounded gruff in her ear.

"You stay there 'til this door's closed, then you can take that blindfold off. You try and run, missy, and you'll regret it. There are many things a man can do to a body like yours that'll make you wish you'd just listened. Behave, and we'll leave you be. Got it?" Pepper couldn't reply. When she was silent for longer than a few seconds, the man shook her roughly. "Got it?" he repeated. Pepper nodded quickly, not trusting herself to speak.

When the door closed, Pepper still waited a few moments before removing the blindfold slowly. She looked around the room she was in.

No windows, two single beds, which she questioned, before moving on. A table with two chairs, and the door. No handle or lock this side. Looking up to the ceiling, she saw two cameras, placed to give her captor's a full view of the room. Another door caught her attention, and as she moved toward it and opened it, she found a bathroom consisting of a small toilet, equally small sink, and a tiny shower. There was no camera in here at least, and with the door closed the other cameras couldn't see in here either.

Sighing, she looked down at her attire, taking in damages to the expensive suit. Her slacks were muddy and torn at the hem, but her shirt was in one piece. Her jacket and purse were missing, and most of her hair had fallen from the bun in was in.

Pepper walked over to one of the single beds, the one closest to the wall, and sat on it. It was fairly comfortable, considering, but she wouldn't allow herself to sleep. She pulled up her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin atop of them. She stared at the door.

It must've been at least an hour before the voices returned outside, and Pepper allowed herself to move. She stood, still staring at the door, as she heard the key in the other side. A large man in a ski mask entered, dragging an seemingly-unconscious form behind him. However, when the form groaned in response to being dumped unceremoniously onto the floor, Pepper deduced that it was not, but still did not allow herself to look at it, thinking that would be considered rude.

The man in the mask offered her no words, just a leer, before he left. As soon as the door closed, Pepper looked to the body on the floor, and started.

"Tony!" she cried, leaping to the ground in front of him. She shook his shoulder, and he mumbled something. "What Tony?"

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I didn't remember. I'm sorry, Pepper. This is all my fault."

"Tony amnesia is common for trauma victims. This isn't your fault at all Tony," Pepper comforted, cradling his head in her lap.

"No, Pepper, you don't understand," Tony said. "They made me forget, and now I remember. And you're here because of me. I'm so sorry Pepper, when they had me before… they… Pepper I'm so sorry, I promised them anything to let me go, but I didn't know what they'd want, they just let me go and oh God I'm so sorry."

"Shh Tony, it's okay. Tell me, what do they want?"

"They want you, Pepper."


	11. Chapter Ten

**Author's Notes: **I'm on a roll here, two chapters up in the same day and a third being written! I dunno if this will go up tonight or tomorrow, but even still! This story is literally writing itself. When I write, I dunno if it's the same for you writers out there, I picture it happening in my head, and write what I see, like a film. Music helps me too – it gives me a soundtrack to the pictures in my head. And these few chapters are coming from a line I dreamt, of Tony saying, "I promised them you, Pepper". Odd, huh? Also, did anyone else know that Robert Downey Jr has an album out? Called "The Futurist". I was listening to the songs, and I'd heard them before, and not realised it was him! Then again, I didn't recognise him in Tropic Thunder at first. Anyway, enough from me!

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

When Tony came around, he was aware of his back against a hard, probably wooden, chair. His hands were tied and his vision dark, so he assumed he was blindfolded. He was immediately reminded of a similar situation that he'd experienced. Only in his mind it was hot; unbearably hot. The cascade of memories that followed practically winded him.

Afghanistan – the events leading up to and after that, the suit, the Fireman's benefit when Pepper had worn _that _dress, getting knocked in the suit when going to save her. Kidnapped again.

He couldn't help the sarcastic thought of: _wonderful. What is it with me that just screams "kidnap!"?_

He could hear voices around him, but he didn't focus on them. He focused on his new-found memories, finding there were still gaps. He couldn't remember much more of his second kidnap; just that it happened.

"You didn't do as you were told, Anthony me-boy," a voice drawled in a British accent, and Tony realised he recognised it. "But then again, it was to be expected. That amnesia shot worked a little better than we'd hoped. We only wanted you to forget getting kidnapped, but forgetting your whole life? Bonus."

Tony refrained from commenting more than asking; "What was I supposed to do?"

The man chuckled. "Think, boy. On your last day here with us; we were being particularly cruel. It was the pear that got you in the end, wasn't it?"

_Pear? _An image of a large plastic object in the shape of a pear came to mind, and he slowly remembered its properties. It opened, slowly, in whatever crevice it was put into. Tony vividly remembered the use of it in his mouth – the slow torture of not knowing when it was going to start ripping flesh, and the agonising pain when it started.

"_Do it, boy," the man ordered._

_Tony vehemently shook his head no, despite the pear looming near his mouth. _

"_I'll do anything but that. I'll give you anything other than that," Tony begged._

"_I can think of a certain someone who would convince you to do what we want. If she were here, in out control, I think you'd do what we want. You've heard what we do to the women here with your own ears, haven't you boy?"_

_Tony didn't answer, because he had heard. The screams and the begging. Whatever happened to them, and his imagination was very fruitful there, was not enjoyable, and Tony believed that any amount of torture placed upon him was better than whatever they'd do to __**her **__if she were here._

"_You can't have her," he told them. "She's got no part in this, leave her out."_

"_Oh so you know who we're talking about then? But I'm pretty sure you just said you'd give us anything other than what we want. So I think we're entitled to her. You just promised her to us. What will she make of that?"_

"Ah, remembering I see?" the British voice was so cold, Tony couldn't decide whether it was worse in his head or out loud, but he didn't really fancy comparing variables right now. "And now we have her. We let you go on the promise that you'd either make what we want, or we'd come get you, and her. You didn't deliver, boy. And now we have her. The big hand of the man pulled Tony up brutally, and began dragging him in a direction. Tony knew he should try and remember where he was being taken, but he couldn't, he was in too much shock.

_Pepper._

* * *

"They want you, Pepper."

Pepper froze at that. Her? What could they want with her? "Why?" she found herself asking.

"Because I didn't do what they wanted."

"What did they want? Tony come over to the beds and tell me everything. And I mean everything." Tony meekly nodded and followed her.

She sat on the bed she'd claimed as hers, and Tony sat on the other, refusing ot meet her eyes.

"It was at the Expo. The drones started exploding and I knew you were there and I wanted – _needed – _to come save you. I was on my way to – I nearly made it, and then something knocked me out of the sky, and I couldn't move. I've never felt so helpless ever. I just kept thinking about how you were going to die, and I couldn't help you. They started removing just enough armour to remove me, then they put it back together and dropped it. I passed out then. Then I was here; this exact place. They wanted me to develop a virus to put into the FBI mainframe and release data of all their undercover cops. But I wouldn't do it. They tried torture and I still wouldn't do it. I told them I'd give them anything other than that. They used that against me when they said they were going to use you as bargaining against me. They were going to keep you here to make me do it, threaten you to make me develop a virus. _God _Pepper I can't let them take you. You have no idea what they do to women here and it's all my fault!" Tony lashed out and hit the wall next to him, startling Pepper.

Timidly, she leant forward and touched a hand on his shoulder. "Tony; I'm only your assistant, why do they think I'd be such an asset to you – you can train another one of me in no time." It hurt Pepper to say that, but she felt confused that Tony would care so much about his assistant. True, he'd been different since Afghanistan, but that was all.

Tony looked at her incredulously. "You're serious? You haven't figured it out by now?" at her negative shake, Tony spoke again. "Pepper, I -"

The door opened again to reveal the same big British man. "You," he said, pointing to Pepper. "With me."


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Author's Notes: **Don't hate me! *dodges flying objects* If you are sensitive to rape, please skip the scene in this chapter. From when Pepper disappears off camera to just before the line break. Sorry, it's not graphic, but I suppose it doesn't have to be.

Please review?

I have also made a trailer for this story: http:/ www. youtube. com/ watch? v=A_grfxkN8hw (just remove the spaces)

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

Pepper had been back for some time now, but still hadn't spoken a word to Tony. She'd come back, climbed onto her bed, wrapped her arms around her knees, and stared. Tony had tried to talk to her, but to no avail. He couldn't notice any great differences in her – there were small bruises on her cheek, probably from a slap, her clothes weren't torn, just untidy. And she still hadn't moved.

"Pepper?" Tony asked softly. She was beginning to scare him. Slowly, as to not startle her, he moved toward where she was sat, and placed himself next to her. Still no movement. "Pepper? What happened?" it was then that she started crying. Silently. No sound came from her lips, but the tears flowed freely down her cheeks. Boldly, Tony reached out an arm and placed it around her shoulders, encouraging her to rest on him. She did.

And as she sobbed, she told him.

* * *

_1 hour earlier_

"You," he said, pointing to Pepper. "With me."

Pepper froze initially, before deciding against fighting, and stood to follow him. Tony looked apprehensive at her leaving, but made no move to stop her. Slowly, she walked over to the man at the door. He grabbed hold of her upper arm and roughly pulled her out the door, causing her to stumble over her feet slightly, then pulled the door close behind him.

With his hand tightly clasped around her arm, the man led her away from the room. He took her down a dingy corridor full of cobwebs. The paint on the wall was peeling, she noticed. He took her to the end of the corridor and through a door directly in front of them. The man led her to the centre of the room, gave her a disconcerting grin, before leaving the room.

Pepper took this as an opportunity to look around the room. As she did, she noticed that it was completely bare. The only furniture in the room was a wooden chair, sitting ominously in the dead centre of the room. The walls were a dark mahogany, and the floor felt hard beneath her feet, so she assumed wood again, but it was so dusty it was difficult to tell.

The door behind her opened, and she spun on her heel. A new man was entering this time, he was shorter than the other, and his face seemed kinder. Pepper did not let this allow her to lower her guard, however. The man stopped once he'd entered a few steps into the room. His face now seemed, guilty, almost. Was he here by choice?

"For the record," he said quietly, "I'm sorry for what's going to happen. This is one part of the big guy's plans that I never enjoy. Sorry."

Now Pepper was scared. What plans? What part? Why was it awful to have this kidnapper actually apologising?

Before she could ask any of these questions, the big man was back. He gave her that grin, which now seemed even more evil, before shooing the smaller man to the back of the room.

"Now then, lovely," he spoke. "Shall we have some fun?"

He advanced slowly toward her, like a tiger stalking its prey, and Pepper found herself backing away. A step for a step. But when she was caught on the upper arms by the smaller man, her eyes widened in fear. She began to struggle against him, thinking she'd have the size over him, but the man was stronger than he looked.

"Now, now," the bigger man chided. "Don't struggle, it'll only give you bruises." He was right in front of her now. He brought out a hand and stroked it almost lovingly along her jaw line. When Pepper tried to pull her face away, he forcefully grabbed her chin in his hands and made her face him. Laughing darkly, he pressed his lips to hers. "Set up the camera, Danny-boy."

The smaller man – Danny – let go of Pepper's arms to do as he was told. Pepper didn't try to escape, knowing that would only bode worse for her right now. She had no surprise element, they'd be able to stop her. Once the camera was set up facing the chair, the big man – Boss, as Pepper dubbed him – hauled her over in front of it.

"Press record," he ordered.

The little red light on the camera seemed almost ominous in the empty room, and the big man came to stand behind her. He placed his hands on her shoulders, and began to speak.

"As you can see, your precious Ms Potts is here with us. And yes, Mr. Stark is too. We won't be returning them yet – Ms Potts here makes too good bargaining material. She'll be well looked after, if she behaves," at this, Boss leered at the camera and roughly groped Pepper's left breast. "If she doesn't…" he trailed off, but Pepper's imagination filled in for her. In a panic, she drove her elbow behind her and into Boss' chest, winding him momentarily.

Frantically, she ran toward the door, but Danny caught her before she got there. She cried out at his hand caught her arm and twisted it painfully. "Can't let you do that," he said. "Why didn't you just stay there? You'd have been okay. I'm sorry."

Boss had gotten his breath back, and was advancing toward her now. She could still see the glow of the camera light, but they were out of view of it. His hand came into contact with her cheek and she gasped at the sting.

"You stupid _woman!_" he cried. "What did you do that for? Now you'll have to be taught a lesson."

The camera lens was still focused onto the chair in the middle of the room, but the sound recording equipment was sufficient to hear the sounds from the other side of the room:

A woman's cry, the sound of a metal zipper being opened, fabric rustling, the woman again, pleading no, sounds of a struggle. Repeating whimpers of "No, no, no, please, no, please I'm sorry, no." Grunts, more fabric rustling, more whimpers. A final grunt, the zipper again, then silence.

Boss hauled Pepper up by her arms, her body limp and tears on her cheeks as he carried her back to the seat. The camera caught sight of her again, being dumped unceremoniously onto the chair, his hands on her the only thing holding her up.

"That's what happens when she doesn't behave. We'll be returning them to you shortly, as soon as Mr. Stark has the virus we want."

Recording cut.


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Author's Notes: **Well here comes the greatly awaited reaction from Tony. I think I'm getting near the end of this story now, can't see it going past about 5 more chapters I think. I may be wrong, but I think that's all. I have an idea for a new story too based on the song 'Congratulations' by Blue October. Also – I now own a bearded dragon! He's so cute! Anyway – Chapter 12.

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

As Pepper told her story, Tony's fists slowly clenched tighter and tighter. How could somebody do something like that? And to Pepper, no less. He kept his arm securely around Pepper and pulled her closer to him, offering what comfort he could. When Pepper looked up at him through wet lashes, Tony thought he'd never seen anything prettier, even with his new-found memory. Despite the horrid situation they were in, Tony could only think now of how much he wanted to kiss her, to take away the stench of Boss on her.

Pepper must have seen the fire appearing in his eyes, because she sat up straighter. Tony was about to apologise, when Pepper's lips found his. She was trembling, and her lips were salty and wet from tears, but Tony still kissed her back. When Pepper pulled back slightly, leaving barely a hair-breadth of space between them, Tony went to ask her what was wrong, but Pepper spoke first.

"Make me forget," she whispered. "Please Tony, all I can feel is _him _please I need you to take that away."

Tony searched her eyes, and seeing nothing other than sadness, pleading, and a desperation he himself felt, he reached forward, and covered her body with his, returning his lips back to hers.

* * *

Rhodey was sat in Tony's living room, searching his brain for any clue as to why Pepper would have disappeared. He came up with nothing other than kidnap.

So he'd waited at the Malibu home, waiting for her to show up, and when she hadn't, he'd had Jarvis play him back all footage. Tony had been trying to remember, for Pepper's sake. A news crew had spotted Tony out and about, gone mad, and it had been caught on camera when a masked man had drugged him and taken him away.

Again.

Rhodey couldn't help but wonder whether Tony ever got bored of being kidnapped. Then decided that it was too traumatic for him being kidnapped in the first place to be thinking about the novelty wearing off.

"Colonel Rhodes, there has been a package left at the gates for us. Shall I send Dummy?"

"Yeah, sure," Rhodey replied distractedly. Then straightened up. "Did you say for 'us', Jarvis?"

"Indeed," the AI replied. "It is addressed to Colonel Rhodes, courtesy of Tony's AI, followed by the address. I do not know whether to be insulted they do not know my name, or impressed that they even know of my existence."

Rhodey smirked at that, and accepted the package from Dummy. "Scan it Jarvis, let's make sure it's not dangerous."

After a moment, Jarvis replied. "It contains simply a Universal Serial Bus."

"In English?"

"A USB Memory Stick," Jarvis sounded as if he were talking to a child. Rhodey decided that Tony had made him _very _human-like.

"Right," Rhodey replied. "Well, we'll put in it, view it and you'll just have to keep your sensors on crazy for any type of virus or malware, right?"

"Correct," Jarvis replied.

They set to work doing exactly what they said they would, and discovered a video file hidden deep within the encrypted files on the flash drive. When it began to play, showing a video of Pepper being held in front of a camera, Rhodey knew to expect the worst.

The video didn't ask for a ransom, just told them they'd be given back when they've done what they need to do. But the sounds Rhodey heard when Pepper ran from the leader…

Rhodey couldn't bear thinking about it.

The AI and Rhodey were silent for a few moments after the video ended. The image of Pepper broken on that chair at the end burned deep into Rhodey's mind.

"Jarvis," Rhodey croaked out. "Can you try and find the location where this video had been recorded?"

"I could track the IP of the video, yes. Estimated time until completion: two hours, thirty-three minutes." The AI replied.

Exactly two hours and thirty three minutes later, Jarvis had found the location of the video to be an abandoned warehouse one hour's drive from Malibu. During the time in which Jarvis was locating Tony and Pepper, Rhodey had called the LAPD, who had arrived at the mansion and asked the usual questions.

Eventually came the time to go and save Tony and Pepper.

* * *

Pepper was laid on one of the beds, cuddled into Tony's side. Tony had his arm around her shoulders and was gently stroking her arm, his nose buried in her hair. They'd been this way for about two hours by Tony's calculations, and knew that before long, Boss or Danny would come and collect either one of them for any number of reasons. Tony had already decided he'd make the virus for them when they next asked, instead of letting Pepper getting the blame for him not.

He'd began to wonder if Pepper had fallen asleep on him when he heard the commotion outside the door. There was bangs, a shout of a male that he didn't recognise, a curse from one he did, but then the hsouting just tumbled over each other and he couldn't make out specific voices.

When the door to the 'cell' banged opened, Tony expected the worse.

But he didn't expect to see Colonel Rhodes face.


	14. Epilogue

**Author's Notes: **How cool is this, I asked dad if I could pretty please have some tickets to go see Blue October, and two weeks later he comes back and says "Couldn't find any Blue October gigs, but how do you feel about 30 Seconds to Mars, _and _Linkin Park?" =O

My dad is awesome.

Last chapter people! At the end of this chapter, you'll find the teaser to my next story. Not a sequel, though. Might do one of those after the next story I write.

* * *

**Epilogue**

Tony could honestly say he'd never been more pleased to see Rhodey in his life. Pepper hadn't let go of his arm when he'd stood up, intending to beat on Boss when he came through the door, and Rhodey seemed to notice this, glancing momentarialy at her hand on his arm, before saying,

"Come on, police are here, they've got it all sorted now, you guys can leave."

Tony gently pulled Pepper to him, and as she snuggled into him seeking his comfort, they followed Rhodey out of their prison.

* * *

Tony had been made to release a statement to the police about what they were asking for, and then to the press to stop speculation. The video footage was swiftly destroyed, and life had to continue as normal.

It took a month for Pepper to stop having nightmares, and a month more than that for Tony to tell her he loved her. Pepper didn't return in until four months had passed.

A year on, and Pepper was walking down the makeshift aisle in Tony's garden, a boquet of white lilies in her hands, and a delicate veil covering her face. As she reached Tony, he lifted the veil and smiled at his fiancée.

The bishop said his piece, the couple said theirs, and they kissed gently. The press outside the gates snapped their cameras up, taking photo upon photo of the billionaire playboy finally tied down by his CEO replacement.

* * *

_16 years on_

Lily Stark turned the key in her new bugatti veyron, and revved it before flying out of the garage.

Upstairs, Pepper complained at how similar her daughter was to her father, while her father just laughed and said,

"Nah, her suit's not finished yet."

* * *

_**Sorry if that was a bit rushed, was kinda lost in writing this chapter! Anyway, teaser for my new story, 'Old News'.**_

**As Pepper opened the official looking letter, her heart fluttered and her stomach lurched. She never thought this day would come. Closing the letter again with shaking hands, Pepper set off to work. She'd have to request those days off, and maybe request a lawyer of Tony's…**

**She was going to win her daughter back if it killed her.**


End file.
